Books like 'The Complete Plays'
Readers who enjoyed The Complete Plays by Aristophanes also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
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The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov
Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars · 73 ratingsMoscow, 1929: a city that has lost its way amid corruption and fear, inhabited by people who have abandoned their morals and forsaken spirituality. But when a mysterious stranger arrives in town with a bizarre entourage that includes a giant talking cat and a fanged assassin, all hell breaks loose... -
The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis
Rated: 4.27 of 5 stars · 78 ratingsThe story takes the form of a series of letters from a senior demon, Screwtape, to his nephew, a junior "tempter" named Wormwood, so as to advise him on methods of securing the damnation of a British man, known only as "the Patient".Screwtape holds an administrative post in the bureaucracy ("Lowerarchy") of Hell, and acts as a mentor to Wormwood, the inexperienced tempter...Categorized as:
classics historical-fiction humor literary-fiction myths retellings satire university -
Mort: The Play by Stephen Briggs, Terry Pratchett
Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars · 39 ratingsAdapted for the stage by Stephen Briggs, this tells the story of Mort, who has been chosen as Death's apprentice. He gets board and lodging and free use of company horse, and doesn't even need time off for his grandmother's funeral. The trouble begins when instead of collecting the soul of a princess, he kills her would-be assassin, and changes history... -
Gramercy Classics Lewis Carroll: The Complete Illustrated Works by Lewis Carroll
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 27 ratingsThis beautiful, 868-page leather-bound volume contains a delightful collection of stories from one of history's most beloved children's authors. Lewis Carroll's stories are still as fresh and appealing as when they were first published more than a century ago... -
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King Bidgood's in the Bathtub by Audrey Wood
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsIn this raucous tale, the Knight, the Duke, the Queen--and eventually the whole court--all try to lure King Bidgood from his cozy bathtub, but he won't get out! Will anyone be able to solve this problem?In celebration of the twentieth anniversary of a Caldecott Honor favorite, this new edition features a hardcover book and a musical CD with six original songs ranging in style from a minuet to a...Categorized as:
classics early-modern historical-fiction humor retellings book children children-books -
The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion: Vol. 1 by Beth Brower
Rated: 4.22 of 5 stars · 18 ratings“I’ve arrived in London without incident. There are few triumphs in my recent life, but I count this as one. My existence of the last three years has been nothing but incident.”The Year is 1883 and Emma M. Lion has returned to her London neighborhood of St. Crispian’s...Categorized as:
historical-fiction humor classics literary-fiction romance fiction historical industrial-era -
Midlife Magic & Medusa by Meredith Carlisle
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsAlex has barely strapped on her magical training wheels when a gorgon slithers into town! Medusa isn’t just seeking asylum, either. She expects Alex’s help in breaking her own family’s infamous curse.Old hatred runs deep in creatures with such long memories, and keeping the entire town from going after Medusa with their own torches and pitchforks may prove impossible... -
The Overcoat and Other Short Stories by Nikolai Gogol
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 36 ratingsFour works by great 19th-century Russian author - "The Nose," a savage satire of Russia's incompetent bureaucrats; "Old-Fashioned Farmers," a pleasant depiction of an elderly couple living in rustic seclusion; "The Tale of How Ivan Ivanovich Quarrelled with Ivan Nikiforovich," one of Gogol's most famous comic stories; and "The Overcoat," widely considered a masterpiece of form...Categorized as:
classics historical-fiction humor literary-fiction satire adult anthologies audiobook -
Manalive by G.K. Chesterton
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsPerhaps the most light-hearted of all Chesterton's "serious" works, Manalive pits a group of disillusioned young people against Mr. Innocent Smith, a bubbly, high-spirited gentleman who literally falls into their midst. Later accused of murder and denounced for philandering everywhere he goes, Smith prompts his newfound acquaintances to recognize an important idea in most unexpected ways...Categorized as:
classics drama historical-fiction humor literary-fiction 20th-century action-adventure adult -
Get Lost, Odysseus! by Kate McMullan
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsYou might think you know all about The Odyssey, but until you read Get Lost, Odysseus!, you don't know the truth. With Kate McMullan's trademark blend of humor and details from the original tale, Get Lost, Odysseus! tells the Greek classic in a brand-new way in this eBook. The Trojan War is over, but now Odysseus has to find his way home to Ithaca . . -
El Ingenioso Hidalgo Don Quijote de La Mancha II by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 29 ratingsMany of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. Pomona Press are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork...Categorized as:
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The Kin of Ata Are Waiting for You by Dorothy Bryant
Rated: 4.14 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsPart love story, part utopian fantasy, part spiritual fable, The Kin of Ata Are Waiting for You is "a beautiful, symbolic journey of the soul" (Berkeley Monthly). Into the world of the Ata comes a desperate man, running from a fast life of fame and fortune, drugs and crime. He is led by the kin of Ata on a spiritual journey that, sooner or later, we all must take...Categorized as:
classics historical-fiction humor literary-fiction myths retellings satire action-adventure -
The Story of the Stone by Barry Hughart
Rated: 4.12 of 5 stars · 17 ratingsIn the valley of Sorrows, a monk is brutally murdered for a worthless manuscript, and the abbot of the humble monastery calls upon Master Li and Number Ten Ox to investigate the seemingly senseless killing. The most likely suspect is the infamous Laughing Prince, founder of the valley, whose murderous frenzies have made him a legend... -
The Mysterious Stranger by Mark Twain
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsrelates the adventures of Satan, the sinless nephew of the biblical Satan, in Eseldorf, an Austrian village in the year 1702. Twain wrote this version between November 1897 and September 1900. "Eseldorf" is German for "Assville" or "Donkeytown"...Categorized as:
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Just So Stories by Rudyard Kipling
Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars · 31 ratingsLibrarian's Note: Alternate cover edition can be found here.Twelve stories about animals, insects, and other subjects include How the Camel Got His Hump. The Butterfly That Stamped, and How the Alphabet Was Made.Categorized as:
classics historical-fiction humor literary-fiction myths retellings 20th-century action-adventure -
The Story of God: A Biblical Comedy about Love [and Hate] by Chris Matheson
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratings“Part Kurt Vonnegut, part Douglas Adams, but let’s be honest, Matheson had me at ‘Based on the Bible.’” —Dana Gould, comedian and writer The Bible offers some clues to God’s personality—he’s alternately been called vindictive and just, bloodthirsty and caring, all-powerful and impotent, capricious and foresighted, and loving and hateful...Categorized as:
historical-fiction humor literary-fiction myths retellings satire adult alternate-history -
The White Deer by James Thurber
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsHere is a Thurber world of enchanted deer and seven-headed dragons, of wizards and witches, of riddles and spells, of false love and true. It is the story of a beautiful princess, transformed from a deer, who assigns each of three princes a perilous labor to perform in order to win her hand. Drawings by the Author... -
Bubble in the Bathtub by Jo Nesbø
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsThe Fart Powder was such a successful invention that Doctor Proctor, Nilly, and Lisa couldn’t stop there. Next up: a time-travelling bathtub. You just hop in, lather up the Time Soap, and wish for where you’d like to go. Doctor Proctor has plans for this new invention. You see, he lost his true love years ago, when Juliette Margarine married an evil count... -
Who Let the Gods Out? by Maz Evans
Rated: 4.07 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsA shooting star crashes to earth and changes Elliot's life forever. The star is Virgo - a young Zodiac goddess on a mission. When the pair accidentally unleash the wicked death daemon Thanatos, they turn to the old Olympian gods for help... -
Lysistrata / The Acharnians / The Clouds by Aristophanes
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsAristophanes (c.447-385 B.C.), a contemporary of Socrates, was the last and greatest of the Old Attic comedians.Only eleven of his plays survive, and this volume contains Lysistrata, the hilariously bawdy anti-war fantasy; The Acharnians, a plea for peace set against the background of the long war with Sparta; and The Clouds, a satire on contemporary philosophy... -
Through the Looking-Glass by Lewis Carroll
Rated: 4.02 of 5 stars · 68 ratingsWhen Alice steps through a mirror, she enters a reflection of her world where backwards is forwards, the future is remembered, and only the opposite of logic makes sense. Increasingly befuddled, she's challenged by the belligerent Humpty Dumpty, Tweedledum and Tweedledee, the nonsense rhymes of the Jabberwocky, and the discovery that she's a pawn in a living game of chess...Categorized as:
classics historical-fiction humor literary-fiction retellings satire university action-adventure -
Four Plays: The Clouds/The Birds/Lysistrata/The Frogs by Aristophanes
Rated: 4.07 of 5 stars · 30 ratingsThis volume brings together the four most acclaimed comedies of Greek playwright Aristophanes. The darker comedy of The Clouds satirizes Athenian philosophers - Socrates in particular - and reflects the uncertainties of a generation in which all traditional religious and ethical beliefs were being challenged...Categorized as:
ancient-civilization classics drama historical-fiction humor literary-fiction myths retellings -
The Folklore of Discworld by Terry Pratchett, Jacqueline Simpson
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsTerry Pratchett joins up with a leading folklorist to reveal the legends, myths and customs of Discworld, together with helpful hints from Planet Earth.Most of us grew up having always known when to touch wood or cross our fingers, and what happens when a princess kisses a frog or a boy pulls a sword from a stone, yet sadly some of these things are beginning to be forgotten... -
Who Cut the Cheese? by Jo Nesbø
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 10 ratings“Large helpings of whimsy, humorous black-and-white illustrations, and the occasional fart joke provide plenty of silliness” (Booklist) in the third Doctor Proctor adventure from New York Times bestselling author Jo Nesb ø. Nilly, Lisa, and Doctor Proctor are too busy inventing things to watch TV, and everyone says they’re missing out on the hot singing competition... -
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Four Comedies: The Taming of the Shrew, A Midsummer Night's Dream, The Merchant of Venice, Twelfth Night by William Shakespeare
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsThe Taming of the ShrewRobust and bawdy, The Taming of the Shrew captivates audiences with outrageous humor as Katharina, the shrew, engages in a contest of wills–and love–with her bridegroom, Petruchio, in a comedy of unmatched theatrical brilliance, filled with visual gags and witty repartee...Categorized as:
classics drama historical-fiction humor literary-fiction action-adventure adult book -
Monkey: The Journey to the West by Wu Cheng'en, David Kherdian
Rated: 4.04 of 5 stars · 30 ratingsProbably the most popular book in the history of the Far East, this classic sixteenth century novel is a combination of picaresque novel and folk epic that mixes satire, allegory, and history into a rollicking adventure. It is the story of the roguish Monkey and his encounters with major and minor spirits, gods, demigods, demons, ogres, monsters, and fairies... -
The Picture of Dorian Gray and Three Stories by Oscar Wilde
Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars · 23 ratings"The Picture of Dorian Gray, " Wilde's only full-length novel, is the enduringly eerie fable of a portrait that ages and decays as its model remains ever young and beautiful. Dorian Gray, a naive and irresistible young man, is lured by decadent Lord Henry Wotton into a life of depravity... -
The Complete Tales of Washington Irving by Washington Irving
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsWashington Irving (1783–1859) was the first American literary artist to earn his living solely through his writings and the first to enjoy international acclaim. In addition to his long public service as a diplomat, Irving was amazingly prolific: His collected works fill forty volumes that encompass essays, history, travel writings, and multi-volume biographies of Columbus and Washington... -
Sir Thomas the Hesitant and the Table of Less Valued Knights by Liam Perrin
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsWhimsical and poignant, Sir Thomas the Hesitant and the Table of Less Valued Knights tells the story of Thomas Farmer who dreams of becoming a knight, sets out to save his brother from the hands of an evil Baron, and uncovers a plot that threatens Camelot itself... -
Alexander at the World's End by Tom Holt
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsWhen his father dies, and he is reduced at a stroke from prosperity to penury, Euxenus decides to leave Athens and seek his fortune elsewhere. As a philosopher and intellectual of some note, he has no difficulty getting a job as tutor to a young prince in the wealthy but utterly provincial court of King Philip of Macedon. The young prince is called Alexander, and the rest is history... -
The Battle of the Frogs and Mice by Giacomo Leopardi
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsBatracomiomaquia ou A Batalha dos Sapos e Ratos é uma paródia cômica no poema épico Ilíada, comumente atribuído a Homero pelos romanos, mas, de acordo com Plutarco1 foi escrito por Pigres de Halicarnasso, o irmão (ou filho) de Artemísia I de Cária, aliada de Xerxes. Alguns literatos modernos, no entanto, atribuem-no a um poeta anônimo do tempo de Alexandre, o Grande... -
Orlando Furioso by Ludovico Ariosto
Rated: 4.04 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsThe only unabridged prose translation of Ariosto's Orlando Furioso - a witty parody of the chivalric legends of Charlemagne and the Saracen invasion of France - this version faithfully recaptures the entire narrative and the subtle meanings behind it... -
Beasts and Super-Beasts by Saki
Rated: 4.11 of 5 stars · 13 ratingsShort excerpt: I wish you would turn me into a wolf Mr. Bilsiter said his hostess at luncheon the day after his arrival... -
The Incompleat Enchanter by L. Sprague de Camp, Fletcher Pratt
Rated: 4.05 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsThe Mathematics of Magic - it was the greatest discovery ever. Or so thought Professor Harold Shea. With the proper equations he could instantly transport himself and his friend Reed Chalmers back - or sideways - in time to all the wondrous lands of ancient myth and legend.But slips in time were a hazard. and Shea's magic didn't always work quite as he expected... -
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Anima Rising by Christopher Moore
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsFrom New York Times bestselling author Christopher Moore comes a hilariously deranged tale of a mad scientist, a famous painter, and an undead woman’s electrifying journey of self-discovery.Vienna, 1911. Gustav Klimt, the most famous painter in the Austrian Empire, the darling of Viennese society, spots a woman’s nude body in the Danube canal...Categorized as:
historical-fiction humor myths literary-fiction retellings fantasy fiction audiobook -
A Midsummer Night's Dream by William Shakespeare, Catherine Belsey
Rated: 3.94 of 5 stars · 81 ratingsShakespeare's intertwined love polygons begin to get complicated from the start--Demetrius and Lysander both want Hermia but she only has eyes for Lysander. Bad news is, Hermia's father wants Demetrius for a son-in-law. On the outside is Helena, whose unreturned love burns hot for Demetrius...Categorized as:
classics drama early-modern historical-fiction humor literary-fiction myths university -
Shit Cassandra Saw by Gwen E. Kirby, Julia Whelan
Rated: 3.92 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsMargaret Atwood meets Buffy in these funny, warm, and furious stories of women at their breaking points, from Hellenic times to today.Cassandra may have seen the future, but it doesn't mean she's resigned to telling the Trojans everything she knows... -
Mercury Begins by Robert Kroese
Rated: 3.90 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsTravel to ancient Troy with the irrepressible angel Mercury as he masterminds the most unnecessarily complicated sneak attack in history! Never read any of the Mercury books? Start here! Already read one or more of the books? Also OK! There's no wrong way to read this story, unless you're using a spatula and a bowl full of goose feathers...Categorized as:
historical-fiction humor myths retellings action-adventure adult alternate-history book -
Lysistrata and Other Plays by Aristophanes
Rated: 3.96 of 5 stars · 29 ratingsWriting at the time of political and social crisis in Athens Aristophanes was an eloquent yet bawdy challenger to the demagogue and the sophist. The Achanians is a plea for peace set against the background of the long war with Sparta. In Lysistrata a band of women tap into the awesome power of sex in order to end a war...Categorized as:
ancient-civilization classics drama historical-fiction humor literary-fiction myths retellings -
Pig Scrolls by Paul Shipton
Rated: 3.83 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsGryllus is the hero of The Pig Scrolls. Gryllus is a pig. Well, not strictly speaking a pig. He's a man who got turned into a pig. More specifically, he was one of Odysseus's crew (you remember Odysseus - big bloke, hero, all round clever clogs) and the whole crew got turned into pigs by Circe, a witch, but Gryllus never got turned back... -
Athenian Steel by P.K. Lentz
Rated: 3.83 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsShe is doom and madness. She is Thalassia.In 425 BCE, the Athenian general Demosthenes comes into possession of a weapon from the stars. He fears to wield it against his city's bitter enemy Sparta, but he knows that he must, lest it be wielded by others... -
Wild Children by Richard Roberts
Rated: 3.83 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsBad children are punished. Be bad, a child is told, and you’ll be turned into an animal, marked with your crime.The Wild Children are forever young, but that, too, can be a curse.Five children each tell a different story of what they became:One learns that wrong can be right, and her curse may be a blessing.Another is so Wild he must learn the simplest lesson, to love someone else... -
Paradiso by Dante Alighieri
Rated: 3.95 of 5 stars · 36 ratingsHaving plunged to the uttermost depths of Hell and climbed the Mount of Purgatory in parts one and two of the Divine Comedy, Dante ascends to Heaven in this third and final part, continuing his soul's search for God, guided by his beloved Beatrice...Categorized as:
classics drama early-modern historical-fiction humor literary-fiction myths retellings -
Peter Pan and Other Plays by J.M. Barrie
Rated: 3.94 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsFor some 20 years at the beginning of the century J M Barrie enjoyed enormous commercial success with a wide variety of plays, but he is best known for Peter Pan. It retains its popularity today, both in the original and in adaptations. Barrie returned to the Peter Pan story a few years later with When Wendy Grew Up when the two are reunited later in Wendy's life... -
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The Canterbury Tales, and Other Poems (Illustrated) by Geoffrey Chaucer
Rated: 3.93 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsThe Canterbury Tales and Poems is a collection of stories written in Middle English by Geoffrey Chaucer at the end of the 14th century. The tales (mostly in verse, although some are in prose) are told as part of a story-telling contest by a group of pilgrims as they travel together on a journey from Southwark to the shrine of Saint Thomas Becket at Canterbury Cathedral...Categorized as:
classics drama historical-fiction humor literary-fiction university action-adventure adult -
Wise Children by Angela Carter
Rated: 3.92 of 5 stars · 33 ratingsDora and Nora Chance are a famous song-and-dance team of the British music halls. Billed as The Lucky Chances, the sisters are the illegitimate and unacknowledged daughters of Sir Melchior Hazard, the greatest Shakespearean actor of his day. At once ribald and sentimental, glittery and tender, this rambunctious family saga is Angela Carter at her bewitching best...Categorized as:
classics historical-fiction humor literary-fiction retellings university 20th-century audiobook -
The Diaries of Adam and Eve by Mark Twain
Rated: 3.88 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsWith his trademark charm and wit, Mark Twain (1835-1910) tells the Garden of Eden story in the first person, allegedly deciphering the newly discovered diaries of the legendary father and mother of the human race...Categorized as:
classics historical-fiction humor literary-fiction myths retellings satire 20th-century -
The Golden Ass by Apuleius, Claudio Annaratone
Rated: 3.88 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsAn enchanting story that has inspired generations of writers, including Boccaccio, Shakespeare, Cervantes and Keats Written towards the end of the second century AD, The Golden Ass tells the story of the many adventures of a young man whose fascination with witchcraft leads him to be transformed into a donkey...Categorized as:
ancient-civilization classics historical-fiction humor literary-fiction myths satire university -
A Farce to Be Reckoned With by Roger Zelazny, Robert Sheckley
Rated: 3.80 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsThe play's the thing in this comic fantasy from the authors of Bring Me the Head of Prince Charming and If at Faust You Don't SucceedIt's that quiet time between Millennia, and the demon Azzie is becoming bored and restless. Then inspiration hits. On a devilish sabbatical in Europe, Azzie discovers that morality plays are all the rage... -
Shakespeare for Squirrels by Christopher Moore
Rated: 3.90 of 5 stars · 29 ratingsNew York Times Bestseller!Shakespeare meets Dashiell Hammett in this wildly entertaining murder mystery from New York Times bestselling author Christopher Moore—an uproarious, hardboiled take on the Bard’s most performed play, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, featuring Pocket, the hero of Fool and The Serpent of Venice, along with his sidekick, Drool, and pet monkey, Jeff...Categorized as:
classics historical-fiction humor literary-fiction myths retellings satire action-adventure
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